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What's the best ammo for my M1A and M1 Carbine?

So I just bought a couple of used rifles. One is a Springfield M1A and the other is a US M1 Carbine .30. Both look in good shape.

What is the best ammo for the Springfield M1A? The internet says it can take a .308 Winchester or a 7.62x51 mm Nata round. Which is best? Full metal jacket? Copper cases? Or steel? Any thoughts or opinions?

About my US M1 Carbine .30--are there any choices there?

I don't know the ins and outs of ammo really and would appreciate an experts opinion.

I don't know the ins and outs of ammo really and would appreciate an experts opinion.

I'm no expert but I have an opinion.

I want both the rifles for hunting and/or protection purposes

If hunting with these rifles then you need to check up on the gaming laws where you are. For example, in Iowa the law requires that one use expanding type ammunition to hunt deer. When it comes to fur bearing animals just about anything will be legal. The laws where you are may differ.

When it comes to protection against anything other than big cats or bears I'd suggest not using the Springfield. A .308 round has considerable penetration and will very likely go through your intended target and the house behind it.

If you are going to protect yourself against big cats or bears then the Springfield sounds like an excellent choice. Again, I'm no expert but I've heard that FMJ ammo is a good idea for these animals. They have thick skins and heavy bones, that means you need every advantage you can get to go deep into your target to hit something vital.

When it comes to .30 Carbine I think all you will find out there is FMJ. There really is not much demand for this cartridge so you take what you can get. FMJ from a M1 Carbine should do nicely for protection as well as taking a wide variety of game.

I know it is expensive, but the best answer to your question is gather up a variety of ammo and do your own testing. Every gun will have its own "best."

I agree. This will also allow you to determine YOUR "best". I have a .308 rifle that is very light and is only comfortable to shoot with the low recoil loads. They cost a bit more but don't leave me bruised. Your Springfield is heavier than my single shot rifle so this may not be necessary for you.

You can have free speech or you can have income taxes but you cannot have both.

Remington offers soft-nosed ammo for .30 carbine, both loaded rounds and bullets for reloading. Good defensive ammo. Most ammo manufacturers offer basic FMJ's, and there's still some surplus Lake City ammo out there but hard to find. PRVI Partisan is good stuff, Aguila is so-so, but stay away from the steel-cased Wolf garbage.

Don't dismiss the little .30 carbine round, it's more powerful than you think! Ballistics out of the carbine closely match the .357 magnum out of a revolver. It's killed a lot of men in combat in WWII, Korea and Vietnam. I keep one under my bed for spook duty.

I suggest you save all your brass and reload the .30 carbine, even buy more brass if you can find it. There's also lead bullets available, Midway currently has them on sale I think. Polygunbag.com is a good source for pulled FMJ's, I've bought a lot from them.

.30 Carbine Ammo Variety

I have standard ball ammo (FMJ) for target duty and some "varmint" rounds (soft points), but I don't believe I've ever seen gelatin tests for either.

I would also be interested in how the plain lead stuff performs.

If there's a decent hard-cast round for the .30 Carbine, I should imagine that would be adequate for medium game.

And then, of course, I can always dream about some improved Barnes/Hornady stuff that would make the .30 Carbine a viable 100-yard deer rifle round.

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Me: "A friend is someone who cares how your life turns out."

"Truth is a dangerous thing: once found, you must never turn your back on it." -- gh@c2

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Non-Corrosive

All .30 carbine should be non-corrosive. If it's not, don't shoot it. It'll @!#$ up the piston.

Uh, qua?!

I ain't never heered o' no corrosive .30 Carbine made anywhere ever.

Where on earth would one find such an abomination?

Daughter: "Dad, how do I know who's a real friend?"
Me: "A friend is someone who cares how your life turns out."

"Truth is a dangerous thing: once found, you must never turn your back on it." -- gh@c2

"Look at it this way. If America frightens you, feel free to live somewhere else. There are plenty of other countries that don't suffer from excessive liberty. America is where the Liberty is. Liberty is not certified safe." -- gh@c2

The M1A design is sensitive to gas port pressure - much commercial .308 ammo is loaded with slow burning powders that extend the pressure curve up the barrel and will give port pressures outside the intended design envelope. (The M1 Garand is more sensitive.) The rifle won't blow up, but wear will be accelerated. Best to use USGI-equivalent ammo, either US or NATO-member milsurp, or equivalent handloads.

(I think Hornady makes some ammo suitable for the M1A . . . )

Conventional wisdom when handloading is to use no bullets heavier than 180 grains (some set the bar lower) and no powder slower than IMR4320.

As for the carbine . . . standard 110 grain FMJ is fine for plinking, but for defense, I would go to a soft- or hollow point. Note that many carbines won't function well with anything except FMJ . . .

rod5591 you will undoubtedly find that the carbeen is the funnest long gun in the world to shoot, and is just the ticket for new shooters, too. Juuuust enough recoil to be satisfying, accurate enough, delivers just enough whomp out there at the target, and good training in semiauto handling, and if you have a flat-top bolt on yours, it is great fun to cycle the action just to watch the bolt tip over!

Whomp is a technical term usually used only by genuwine firearms professionals.

Terry, 230RN

"Gun control is not about public safety, crime reduction, or 'the children.' Gun control is about power. The people have it, and the government would rather they didn't." (An internet poster, not myself.)

One way around this is to use Google Search with the "site:gunrightsmedia.com" modifier after the search terms. This restricts the search to just this site. The Google engine does a better job of digging up obscure material faster than the built-in search feature ever will.

This search on Google . . .

m1 carbine ammo corrosive site:gunrightsmedia.com

. . . turned up 339 results in under a second.

Daughter: "Dad, how do I know who's a real friend?"
Me: "A friend is someone who cares how your life turns out."

"Truth is a dangerous thing: once found, you must never turn your back on it." -- gh@c2

"Look at it this way. If America frightens you, feel free to live somewhere else. There are plenty of other countries that don't suffer from excessive liberty. America is where the Liberty is. Liberty is not certified safe." -- gh@c2

Owning several M1a's myself, I find loads loaded with Sierra 168gr Match Kings to be very accurate and devastating on white-tail deer. Beware of heavy bullets especially over 200grs as the overpressure can bend the op rod. Buy up milsurp 7.62x51 ammo for plinking. I also have an M1 carbine but rarely shoot it. I primarily use milsurp for it as well when I do get it out.

Getting the results isn't that much of a problem. Perusing the results is the problem.

"Gun control is not about public safety, crime reduction, or 'the children.' Gun control is about power. The people have it, and the government would rather they didn't." (An internet poster, not myself.)